Space Sweepers 승리호 - Movie Review

 

Title: Space Sweepers 승리호

Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Fantasy

Release: 2021

Starring (Main Cast): 

Song Joong Ki as Kim Tae Ho

Kim Tae Ri as Captain Jang/Jang Hyun Sook

Jin Seon Kyu as Tiger Park/Park Kyung Soo

Yoo Hae Jin as Robot Eobdong/Bubs (voice)

Park Ye Rin as Dorothy/ Kang Kot Nim

Director: Jo Sung Hee

Writer: Jo Sung Hee, Yoo Kang Seo Ae, Yoon Seung Min

Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 69%

IMDb Rating: 6.6/10

Audience Rating: 4.7/5

MyDramaList Rating: 8.4/10

Watch with subscription on Netflix: Space Sweepers 

Running Time: 2 hours 16 minutes

Content Rating: TV-MA (Recommended 13+ on MyDramaList)

Violence: Hitting, yelling, shooting, fight scenes and blood

Sexual Content: Low. No nudity. May be verbal references (but I don't remember any)

Language: Significant use of foul language in many different languages (A-word, B-word, F-word...etc.)

Ending: Happy, satisfying

My Synopsis

Collecting and selling garbage from space, the crew of the spaceship "The Victory" are barely staying afloat. Competition with other junk collectors are making it difficult and money is extremely short, with them barely making enough to keep up their ship's repairs. One day, their luck seems to change when they come across a lost humanoid girl that is wanted by wealthy individuals. Particularly James Sullivan the founder of a space haven with some suspicious dealings. Looking forward to finally having money in their pockets, the crew make plans for an exchange. But, there were two things they didn't expect... one, how much she would grow on them, and two, what her true value was. Will they realize her significance before she ends up in the wrong hands?

Trailer

My Review: 9.5/10

Though listed as one of five main characters, the main main character seems to be Kim Tae Ho, played by Song Joong Ki. Early on, I believe even with our first exposure to him, we find that he is looking for the body of his deceased daughter who he lost to space in an explosion at the base he was in a while prior to the start of the movie. She is a huge source to almost all of his actions during the film as he has never been able to let her go and move on. Even the money he is trying to save is for the search and recovery of her. It is a heartbreaking backstory, but gives us a good image of who Tae Ho is. As for Song Joong Ki, he is probably known by everyone who enjoys Korean dramas. He is one of the most popular and well known, and for good reason. He is a great actor and has proven himself many times over.  Truly, it seems he has the Midas touch with every drama he is in. I enjoyed seeing him in a father role for the first time and found it very sweet to see his remembered interactions with his young daughter.

The rest of the crew I will clump together here. Captain Jang, played by Kim Tae Ri, was the head of the spaceship The Victory. She was a kick-butt character and I thought the actress did an amazing job. This was my first time seeing her in anything, but would be interested in seeing more of her work. The next was Tiger Park, played by Jin Seon Kyu. Other than Tae Ho, he was my favorite of the crew. He had the quickest softening towards the young girl and you often would find them together. He also looked incredible here with his dread locks and face tats. The last crew member was Bubs, the robot, voiced by Yoo Hae Jin. I found that they did an incredible job with the technical visuals to create it and make it look real. Bubs, was really a rascally character who was constantly winning the crew's money during games and putting it away in hopes of buying skin grafting to look like a real human.

The last of the main roles belongs to Dorothy, played by Park Ye Rin. Really, she is the child that pushes the movie forward. She appears stashed away amongst one of The Victory's finds and the crew takes her in. They quickly realize she is the humanoid child the galaxy is looking for and make plans to trade her in for money. Her sweet personality, and realistic child behavior makes it difficult for the crew as they all start to care for her. As they begin to discover her true worth, they will be forced to make a decision that could have an affect on the world. This is one of the first works for little Park Ye Rin and she did a fabulous job. I foresee good things for this young one! 

Though not listed as a main character, I could not go through the review without mentioning the story's antagonist, James Sullivan. He is a man who appears to be doing a huge good for society, but in truth he benefits from the world's poor state and wishes to keep it that way. Dorothy is a threat to his created word and he will do anything to get his hands on her and destroy her. James Sullivan is played by the English actor, Richard Armitage. Most of us would know him as playing the iconic roll of Thorin Oakenshield in the Hobbit and/or John Thorton in the British television program, North & South. I enjoyed seeing a good English actor in a Korean movie. Often times I find that not to be the case. This actor is very versatile and though I have seen both the Hobbit and North & South, I only realized that he played all three of these roles while doing the research for this review. I love when an actor can portray characters so different that I don't recognize them. I knew he looked familiar, but I could not place him. In my book, that means he did an excellent job!

The movie itself has gotten a wide range of reviews with some sites, like Rotten Tomatoes, rating it pretty low and other sites like MyDramaList rating it pretty high. However, it debuted in the No. 1 spot on Netflix and I remember reading articles of it topping the charts worldwide. Because of this there are already discussions for a Hollywood remake and a Korean sequel. In truth, I am more interested in the Korean sequel. Though, I am from the US, I am not super impressed by Hollywood and find I have liked the Korean versions better. Can Hollywood really improve on this? I don't think so. 

One of the things I liked was the wide range of languages expressed in this movie. It really helped it truly feel like the world shared space. German, Chinese, Arabic, French, English... etc... and even how the countries came together and helped each other at different times. On its own, I feel the movie included the world and I don't see the need for a remake. My opinion!

Also, a note on the visual effects. They were honestly superb! Top notch job! It is incredible what can be done in this day and age. Again, I don't think Hollywood could do any better. In fact, I am sure of it.

I am normally not a movie person. I do prefer dramas that really delve deep into the characters. It is hard to get that depth in a 2 hour film. But even still, I felt that this storyline was very well done. Their choice to focus on the backstory and deeper character of one individual was wise as they could give a little of that depth without having to spread it out between them all. It is worth the watch and I am glad I had the chance to see it. Very well done and highly recommended!

Awards Won

(Note: This is only a few months after release and has not had a chance yet to take part in contending for the year's awards. I would dare to guess that there will more awards for this film yet to come. I will try to remember to check back every so often and update.)

Jeong Seong Jin, Jong Choi Min (Visual Effects) - Technical Award (57th Baeksang Arts Awards)

안녕! - 줄스